Stats I’ll be watching from the regular season translate to the playoffs:

Protecting Brady. Only 15 sacks allowed by the o-line for the season. Best in the NFL

Pressuring the opposing QB – 17th in the NFL in sacks during the regular season

3rd Down Defense – 3rd in the NFL with 76 3rd downs allowed for 206 yards​​

Speaking of the Patriots, personally, I’m rooting for Josh McDaniels in his next NFL venture, however, the combined record of the Belichick coaching disciples (O’Brien, Crennel, Mangini, and McDaniels in Denver) is 99-140 in the regular season and 0-2 in the playoffs.

If Connor Cook and the Raiders have a prayer on the road in Houston, it’s going to be from their defense forcing turnovers. Lucky for Oakland, Brock Osweiler was 5th in the NFL with 16 INT’s in 2016. The Raiders ranked 9th in the NFL in team interceptions and 2nd in forced fumbles.

The last time the Seattle Seahawks lost a home playoff game? 2005 against the St. Louis Rams in the Wild Card round.

And the last time the Miami Dolphins won a road playoff game? 1999 against the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card round in what was Dan Marino’s final season.

Believe it or not, Eli Manning is 2-0 in playoff games in Lambeau, defeating the Packers in 2011 against Rodgers and 2007 against Brett Favre.

The autopsy for Rex Ryan should start with Tyrod Taylor and the offensive line, who finished the 2016 season ranked 25th in passing yards, 24th in passing TD’s, and 1st in sacks with 42.

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Speaking of coaches losing their jobs, I’m not saying Chip Kelly deserved to keep his, but it takes more than one season with someone else’s roster to truly get evaluated. The school I’ve seen mentioned more than once for Kelly is Texas A&M, but don’t sleep on UCLA if Jim Mora is let go after a 4-8 season.

If you were re-picking the 2015 NFL Draft would you still take Winston over Mariota? A little food for thought on their 2016 #’s:

Completion % - Mariota 61.2 vs. Winston 60.8

Passing Yards – Winston 4,090 vs. Mariota 3,426

Rushing Yards – Mariota 349 vs. Winston 165

TD’s – Winston 28 vs. Mariota 26

INT’s – Winston 18 vs. Mariota 9

Gun to my head, I’m still taking Winston. Mariota is the safer choice and the more consistent player, but Winston reminds me of young Brett Favre as a gunslinger. He’s going to take chances, but he’s going to win more than he can lose.

On that note, do you think the Minnesota Vikings would rather have Sam Bradford or the 2017 first round pick they gave up for him? True to form as an “average” quarterback, Bradford finished the season ranked 16th in passing yards and 19th in TD’s. On a positive note, Bradford ranked among the best starting QB’s in the league in INT’s thrown with 5 (only Dak and Brady finished better).

In 2016, Kirk Cousins was the 13th highest paid QB in the NFL. Heading into the 2017 season, I’d rank Cousins between 10-13 behind Luck, Brees, Rodgers, Wilson, Big Ben, Rivers, Eli, Cam, Brady and Matt Ryan). I would hear arguments on where Dak, Romo, Stafford and Flacco rank. Point is, unless you are certain that Cousins is a top 10 QB, don’t make him your franchise player.​The news that Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin is a Jet’s fan has completely ruined Westeros to the point where Melissandre wouldn’t even be able to revive me.